Customer Reviews

The Shyness & Social Anxiety Workbook: Proven Techniques for Overcoming Your Fears

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

First the book helps you get to know where your major problem areas are by conducting a self-assessment. Next it helps you to change your anxious thoughts such as: "when people look at me, they are thinking I am strange or weird" to a more rational thought like: "most people aren't thinking about me and even if they do they are not likely to think I'm strange". Then, they confront your fears head on through exposure while employing the techniques you've learned. As a person with social anxiety I can tell you exposure treatment is a frightening prospect but it does work. This book holds your hand through it but never coddles you. It's not easy but it is possible to feel better. I use this book between therapy sessions as a kind of crutch or reminder of what I'm suppose to be doing.

This book was really a waste of time. When I was done reading, I was no better off than when I started. The beginning is really interesting in that it describes what kind of feelings go on inside the mind of a shy person. I thought I was the only one in the world who felt these things, and it was interesting to see them expressed by someone else in a book. So I continued to read on to the parts where they tell you how to get better. It said to try stuff like writing in a journal every day and to "think positive", "be assertive", and "practice making small talk". Like I didn't consider that on my own! This book really did not need to be written. What they could have done was just take the beginning of the book and sell it on its own as a short story or something, since it is the only useful or interesting part. After the first part of the book, it's basically telling you to go see a psychiatrist or get medication or both. It starts to get repetitive and is basically filled with the same useless suggestions that any person could have thought of, but they keep re-wording them throughout the book. So save yourself some money and don't buy this book. If you're interested in reading the opening part of the book, see if you can find it in a library.

A truly excellent resource! This book is full of valuable exercises for challenging the irrational thoughts and avoidance behaviors that fuel social anxiety. I particularly appreciated the creative examples of how one can confront and overcome social and performance fears in a gradual and manageable fashion. Of all of the resources that I've come across to date, this book has been the most helpful to me in terms of offering realistic and practical strategies!

This workbook is a great resource! It is great that the authors, who are published researchers in the area of social anxiety, can describe their methods in an easy to read, easy to follow workbook. I especially found the section on getting to know your social anxiety helpful in breaking down something broad and formless (shyness) into a road map for making change.
If you are serious about making some changes in your life with regard to shyness and social avoidance, I highly recommend this book.

I have been a shy and anxious person for years. I recently started a job that requires me to speak up in meetings and even do some public speaking. These are things I have always avoided...but this was a job I really wanted. Antony & Swinson's book has been a huge help to me. I've found the exercises and tips to be very helpful. I do a lot of public speaking now with pretty minimal anxiety and also feel much calmer when casually socializing with new people that I meet. Thanks!

This book can be used toghether with therapy (I recommend Dr Richards selp help series that you can buy on line). The book does not teach you how to change your negative thinking, it only teaches you how to create a hierachy for social situations to work with. It is only helpful if combined with other books/therapies.

I have found the book very helpful in working through my social anxiety, both learning more about how my mind works to cause the anxiety and strategies for accepting the anxiety and working through it rather than fighting it. I haven't looked at any other books on social anxiety so I don't have a full perspective to compare it to other books, but this book has certainly helped me.

This workbook is well-done and provides basic strategies for working toward recovery from social anxiety. For the reader to see any change for the positive s/he must apply all the techniques and do so repeatedly until the resulting thoughts and behaviors become neural pathways of habit in the brain. Preparation and practice are the keys to recovery from this painful, imprisoning disorder.

There are many ways of finding new relationships. There is the conventional way of meeting people face to face. Some of those ways are going to clubs, sporting events, and church activities. Then there are the internet sources that help you meet new people. Some internet sites allow you to meet single people to date. Other websites such as facebook.com allow you to meet new friends and keep in contact with old friends and family. There are many opinions out there on what the best way to meet new people, but I tend to think that people need to come back to the reality of human interaction.
Did you know that famous people like Abraham Lincoln, Thomas Edison, Tom Hanks, Lucille Ball, and even Orville Wright were all very shy people (Gilbert, 2001)? How did these people deal with their shyness? Lincoln made friends with a man named Joshua Speed who encouraged Lincoln to be more involved in social events (Meyers, 2000). Thomas Edison was so shy that he gave up his hopes of becoming a Shakespearean actor due to his shyness and high pitched voice (Gilbert, 2001). Luckily his shyness did not stop him from inventing the light bulb (Gilbert, 2001). To get away from his shyness, Tom Hanks joined the thespian club at school. He found ways to get involved face to face with people that would help him out grow his shyness.
In this day and age, with the computers and internet so assessable to people, some find it easier to meet people online. They spend more time at home, work, or any where they can take their laptop, on their computer. People have lost touch with the world around them. They no longer want to go places to meet new people if they can do it in the comfort of their own personal space. I believe that it is so much better for people to meet face to face to get to know each other.
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Socail anxiety effects the quality of life of many human beings. Ive worked with a number of individuals with this difficulty and was able to aid in their recovery through the use of exercise in this workbook as well as other modalities of treatment. If you are affected by social anxiety or other fears this is a helful resource combined with the help of a trusting therapist or counselor. Remember you dont have to livce thsi way and if you have a sincere desire to improve you certainly will. Believe in yourself and and you can conquer any challenge in life. Recommended as a resource.